Playworks is an Oakland-based national nonprofit that supports learning and physical health by providing safe and inclusive play to low-income students in urban schools. Playworks works with schools to design curriculum and activities that offer play opportunities during recess, lunch and after school programs. Trained coaches work in schools to run a variety of games and sports, as well as teach techniques in group management, violence prevention and conflict resolution.
History
Founder and former president Jill Vialet, who co-founded the Museum of Children’s Art (MOCHA) in Oakland, founded Sports4Kids in 1996, which would change its name to Playworks in 2009.
Playworks initially worked at two schools in Berkeley, California in 1996.
In 2004, Playworks was awarded its first AmeriCorps contract. Since 2004, the organization has recruited recess coaches from AmeriCorps. Coaches introduce games into the playground that are inclusive to everybody while teaching teamwork, conflict mediation, leadership skills and social skills. The Playworks playbook of games includes over 250 games, including 37 variations of tag.
Vialet was elected into the Ashoka fellowship in 2004 for her social entrepreneurial work with Playworks. In 2007, Ashoka Changemakers honored Playworks as a winner of its “Sports for a Better World” competition.
In 2008, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation announced a $18.7 million grant for Playworks for July 2008 to June 2012 in order to expand to 27 cities by 2012.
In 2009, Vialet and Playworks were selected as a member of the Clinton Global Initiative.
In 2011, chief strategy officer, Elizabeth Cushing, was named president and chief operating officer.
Model
Playworks coaches work on-site full-time during recess and after school activities, teaching social skills, problem-solving and conflict resolution. Playworks operates in low-income elementary schools, meaning that at least 50 percent of enrollment must be eligible for free and reduced lunches. For schools that do not meet low-income requirements, Playworks training programs teach parents, educators and staff how to incorporate healthy play during school recesses.
The program costs each school $23,500, and additional support is provided by AmeriCorps and community sponsors.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation states, “Expansion of this program to schools in poor urban neighborhoods across the nation is intended to transcend the social factors - poverty, increased rates of obesity, poor nutrition, neglect, and violence - and provide a pathway to positive health and well-being outcomes for America's low-income children.”
Junior Coach Program
At some schools, Playworks offers the Junior Coach program, where children can be the coach's assistant. Two examples are: the Boston Teachers Union School and Orchard Elementary School District.
Corporate Recess
Playworks' Corporate Recess initiates a play break for adults and also serves as an employee engagement model that offers team building and community service opportunities.
In April 2010, Playworks DC led the Ashoka Global office in an hour recess. The teams played games common to those played at elementary schools, including Rock paper scissors. The recess for Ashoka evolved into an hour of recess per month.
Playworks also hosts fundraiser Corporate Kickball tournaments, where employees from supporting corporations compete in recess play activities and fundraise for the organization. In June 2011, the Portland, Ore. Corporate Kickball tournament brought representatives from Nike, Kohl’s and Kaiser Permanente, raising $14,000 to support 6,000 children in 14 low-income schools.
Sites
Playworks currently serves schools nationwide with local programming available across the country.
Evaluation
During the 2009–2010 school year, Stanford University’s John W. Gardner Center for Youth and their Communities conducted an implementation study of Playworks in San Francisco Bay Area schools. This study found that Playworks created opportunities for student belonging (82 percent of teachers thought that student inclusion in groups improved). This same study evaluated the effectiveness of involving junior coaches during play time, and found that 77 percent of teachers strongly agreed that junior coaches gained leadership skills by participating in the program.